February
14, 2006 - I
didn't know that the world really needed another Pac-Man
World game. I enjoyed the first 3D platformer and
was mildly amused at the sequel but the third installment
of Pac-Man World is starting to get on my nerves.

I
love Pac-Man as much as the next gamer but these old,
tired platformers are really dragging the little guy
down. It's like watching some caged circus animal
forced to perform his daily routine for a cruel and
mindless audience. Free this chewy yellow man from
his platforming hell and let him explore a new genre
from here on in.

As
a platformer this isn't a terrible game but we've
already experienced most of these elements in the
last two games. Have we not jumped on enough trampolines?
Have we not performed enough butt bounces and munched
enough pellets? To those of you that have not had
enough of this activity I give you my apologies before
I call you an old-fashioned geezer gamer.

Pac-Man
3 is fine as a rental and you certainly can't complain
if someone gets it for you as a present - although
you might be able to exchange it for a much better
game.

It's
the little guy's 25th birthday and he's headed home
to Pac-Land to celebrate. Before he gets there he's
accidentally sucked into a mysterious vortex and transported
to the strange dimension haunted by the ghosts. Known
as Spectral World, it's a surreal world that Pac-Man
has to fight his way out of. It's filled with strange
and wondrous levels in addition to a host of dangers
including killer robots, conveyer belts with fire
blasters, rickety platforms and other environmental
hazards.

Pac-Man's
abilities include punching, jumping, climbing, rolling
and gobbling. Along the way he will encounter power
pellets that give him new abilities such as a form
of bullet time, the power to shoot electricity from
his hands and an ability to harness the powers of
the ghosts. In this game, Pac-Man, who is also fully
voiced, finally makes peace with a couple of his ghost
nemesis, Blinky and Clyde. It's a nice touch and shows
some imagination although the entire focus of this
game appears to be aimed at kids and generally inexperienced
gamers.

The
game isn't without its share of mechanical problems
either. The camera isn't always with you, causing
some disorientation. The framerate is inconsistent
and the graphics suffer from low resolution and blurry
textures. It's not an impressive sight for a next-gen
console that has long reached its peak. At least the
main characters look good and Pac-Man is very easy
to control. It's not that the game is forgiving with
leaps and bounds but it affords you the opportunity
to make those jumps with no interference. The music
and voiceovers support the game well but as large
as some of the levels are, so too is the sound eerily
silent in parts. There are huge gaps in the ambient
music, as though someone forgot to add it before it
went into production. It's that obvious.

Lack
of replay value relegates this game to a rental. There
are lots of things to unlock such as Museum which
features the original Pac-Man game as well as an interview
with Pac-Man creator, Toru Iwtani. It's better than
nothing, but it's still nothing to get excited about.

By
Cole SmithCCC
Senior Writer

Rating
out of 5

Pac-Man
World 3 (PS2)

3.8

GraphicsA
tad on the generic side...but it is Pac-Man
we're talking about. He looks good at least
but some environments are a little "meh".

4.0

ControlGood
control but the game mechanics aren't exactly
innovative and new Camera view is an issue.;.

2.5

Music
/ Sound FX / Voice ActingPac
is given the power of speech, but that doesn't
mean he should use it. Generic tunes abound.

3.0

Play
ValueNot
a lot to do once you've beaten it, but their
is a fair bit of Pac-meat on the bones.

3.3

Overall
Rating -
Fair
Not an average. See Rating legend above
for a final score breakdown.

Preview
by Vaughn Smith

Everyone
deserves a second chance; even videogame characters.
Pac-Man, who worked his way into gamers hearts 25
years ago is still going strong, especially after
Namco reinvented the character and placed him and
his wacky world of colorful chaos into a 3D platforming
adventure.

Pac-Man
World 3 is set to return Pac into his most dangerous
adventure yet. In a mad search for power, evil genius
Erwin creates a machine that can penetrate into the
world of the Ghosts...the Spectral Realm! But now
the Spectral Realm is collapsing into the real world,
and this will bring about a massive catastrophe that
will plunge the world into a state of devastation
for years to come! Not unlike the Bush Administration.
Oops, I did it again. I really have to let go of the
political wisecracks.

Although
some gamers are under the impression that Pac-Man
is all used up and old school, I have a 6 year old
at home that would completely disagree with you. He
loves Pac-Man - old, new, revamped, retooled - it
doesn't matter. Yeah, I know. He's a 6 year old so
what does he know? Well for starters, I have a feeling
he can kick your weakgaming ass. The kid is some sort
of a freak. I only wish he could write, because as
near as I can tell, he can play most of these games
better than anyone I know and that includes all of
the guys and girls who work for this website....and
that's a scary thought. Of course, since he's young,
he doesn't play any violent games at all, so you could
take him in a Halo 2 shootout
to regain your rep. When I showed him the screens
for Pac-Man World 3 you'd think I just gave him a
birthday present. He's really digging it and can't
wait for it to show up. He's also a huge Klonoa and
Katamari fan (and I let him play Link in Soul Calibur
2). The kid is quite the Namco fanatic. Hey, he knows
quality, what can I say?

Pac-Man
World 3 looks like it has all of the bases covered.
Cool new moves like wall jumps, poleswings, fence
climbing and even punching. Pac will also have an
wicked arsenal of powerups such as the Power Ribbon,
Time Decelerator (perhaps like bullet time), Chrome
Power, Super Butt Bounce and Electro Charge. You can
even supercharge these by collecting special fruits.
Namco is also letting you control the ghosts for the
first time in 3D and as an added bonus, the original
1980 arcade will be included in celebrations of Pac's
25th anniversary, but come on, how many of you don't
already own a copy of Namco Museum?

Features:

New
story Puts Pan-Man into a strange new world, Leading
him into the mysterios Spectral Realm.

Control
the Ghosts - Special feature now allows players
to play as Pinky and Clyde.

Store
an arsenal of power-ups like the Power Ribbon, Time
Decelerator, Electro-Charge, Chrome Power, and Super
butt Bounce...and super-charge them by collecting
special fruits!

Get
transported into classic 2D and 3D Pac-Man mazes
to compete for bonuses.

New
Pac-Man Moves - Now you con climb fences, jump up
walls, swing around poles and punch enemies!